Bihar Assembly Election 2025 Live Updates: EC transfers Patna cop over Mokama political killing; action against 3 others

Union home minister Amit Shah, during rallies in Bihar, accused Congress MP Rahul Gandhi of insulting Chhath Puja and being ignorant of Indian culture, referring to Gandhi’s Italian maternal roots. Shah said the INDIA bloc would be “wiped out” and urged voters to “avenge” the insult to Chhathi Maiyya. He praised PM Modi’s leadership, highlighting the Nalanda University project and upcoming Punaura Dham development. Shah also attacked the RJD for “jungle raj” in Bihar and defended NDA welfare schemes, asserting a major drop in crime under Nitish Kumar’s rule.

Addressing twin election rallies in Muzaffarpur and Chhapra, Modi wove together the promise of youth empowerment with sharp criticism of the opposition, accusing them of misleading voters and disrespecting Bihar's culture and faith.

The BJP-led alliance's plan presents a contrasting vision and is seen to be ambitious in a state where there is a clamour for cushy govt jobs. In contrast, private jobs, although better paying are seen as riskier, often linked to business cycles and come with features like remuneration being linked to performance.

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will release joint manifesto for the upcoming Bihar assembly elections on Friday. All senior leaders of the alliance are expected to be present at the event. The voting for the 243-seat Bihar assembly will be held in two phases on Nov 6 and 11, whereas bye-polls for eight seats across seven states and UTs will be held on Nov 11. The results for both will be declared on Nov 14. NDA to release joint manifesto for Bihar today.

All senior politicians of the alliance are expected to be present at the event. NDA includes Bharatiya Janata Party, Janata Dal (United), Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular), and Rashtriya Lok Morcha.

Mahagathbandhan, led by Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), includes Congress party, Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) (CPI-ML) led by Deepankar Bhattacharya, Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM), and Mukesh Sahani’s Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP).

On Tuesday, Mahagathbandhan, led by RJD and Congress, released its manifesto titled ‘Bihar Ka Tejashwi Pran,’ promising to pass a law within 20 days of forming govt, to provide govt jobs to one member of every family in the state. According to the manifesto, under ‘Mai-Behin Maan Yojana’, women will receive financial assistance of Rs 2,500 per month from December 1 for the next five years.

Opposition’s alliance promised to implement the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). OPS has been on the Congress agenda as the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu-led government in Himachal Pradesh restored the OPS soon after assuming office. Congress had also included it in its manifesto for the Haryana Assembly polls.

Mahagathbandhan has promised to put the Waqf (Amendment) Act on hold, and to make the management of Waqf properties “welfare-oriented and transparent”. The poll promises also include an increase in the current 20% reservation for Most Backward Classes in panchayat and municipal bodies to 30%. For Scheduled Castes, this limit will be raised from 16% to 20%, and a proportionate increase in reservation for Scheduled Tribes will also be ensured, the manifesto said.

The BJP on Thursday lodged a written complaint against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi with the Chief Election Officer (CEO) of Bihar for his alleged “derogatory remarks” against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The party sought immediate and exemplary action against Gandhi, the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha.

Gandhi, during his public rally at Muzaffarpur and Darbhanga on Wednesday, had said, "Narendra Modi is ready to enact all types of drama. You try telling him at a poll rally that, Mr Prime Minister, we will vote for you if you dance. He will readily perform Bharat Natyam."

The complaint lodged by BJP’s Convenor of Election Commission Coordination Department, Bindhyachal Rai, read, “Such comments are personal, mocking, and intended to insult the dignity of the highest constitutional office of the Republic of India.”

The grounds listed for the complaint include the violation of the Model Code of Conduct (MСС) and Representation of the People Act, 1951, along with degrading the constitutional office of the Prime Minister and breach of public decorum and ethical norms.

The BJP requested the ECI to issue a show-cause notice to Rahul Gandhi and direct him to “tender an unconditional public apology”, apart from barring him from “campaigning for a specified period to preserve the sanctity of democratic and electoral decorum”.

The BJP charged the Congress leader with attempting to malign and demean the public image of Modi for electoral gains, which, it claimed, “falls within the ambit of corrupt electoral practice”.

Earlier in the evening, Union Minister Annapurna Devi had alleged that Rahul Gandhi was maligning the sanctity of Chhath puja “by terming it a drama.”

Gandhi alleged on Wednesday that Modi had tried to enact a "drama" by planning to take a dip in the Yamuna on the occasion of Chhath Puja, but the programme was shelved after it was found that a puddle had been created with clean water since the river was filthy.

Annapurna Devi said, “Women of the Purvanchal region of Bihar, who observe this festival by carrying out a 36-hour nirjala (without drinking water) fast, are aggrieved by his comments”.

A Jan Suraaj Party worker was shot dead on Thursday following a clash between two groups during election campaigning in Bihar's Mokama area, police said.
The deceased is identified as Dularchand Yadav, who was in the convoy when incident happened.

According to Abhishek Singh, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) of Barh-2, the firing broke out when the convoys of two parties crossed paths and an altercation ensued.

"Police received information that the convoys of two parties were crossing each other when one party fired at the other over some issue and also tried to run them over. FIR will be registered and further action will be taken. FSL has been informed. Proper investigation will be done here and further action will be taken," Singh told reporters.

The police said that a proper investigation would be conducted in the case, and further action would be taken.

Reacting to the incident, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav condemned the killing and called for an end to election-time violence.

"There's no need for violence during elections. We've never been in favour of violence. The code of conduct is in place right now, yet some people are roaming around with guns and bullets," he said.

Targeting the ruling NDA government in Bihar, Yadav added, "Dularchand Yadav was murdered in Mokama. People of what nature have taken over Bihar?... The Prime Minister should open his eyes and see the frustration of the people. Those roaming around with guns even during the code of conduct are being protected by the administration... These people are afraid of defeat, but the people of Bihar will give them a befitting reply."

In a post on X, Tejashwi Yadav accused the National Democratic Alliance's government, saying that in the NDA's great jungle rule, which nurtures those in power with hardened criminals and talked of killing journalists.

"There is no place for violence in democracy. In a democracy, battles are fought over issues of ideology and public interest. Not through bombings and shootings! In the NDA's great jungle rule, which nurtures those in power with hardened criminals, they are wreaking havoc outside. Today in Bihar, a sub-inspector, Anirudh Paswan, has been brutally murdered. In Mokama, notorious for crime, power-protected thugs have killed a social worker, Dularchand Yadav," Yadav wrote.

https://x.com/yadavtejashwi/status/1983890367893401828

"The NDA candidates' anger toward journalists, talk of killing journalists, and the earlier recovery of an AK-47--the culmination of all this is visible today. Prime Minister ji, who resorts to empty rhetoric out of fear of real issues, cannot see his own goon rule and great jungle rule from just 35 minutes ago. The Prime Minister is disgracing and devastating Bihar by protecting the great jungle rule in Bihar and giving tickets to its nurturers and enforcers. The people of Bihar will retaliate; from the soil of Bihar, they will uproot your mindset, your protection of crime, and your double-engine government," he further wrote.

Further investigation is underway.

With just 7 days left for the Bihar polls, Munger assembly constituency in Bihar's Munger district is set to witness an unpredictable four-way electoral contest on November 6.
The Munger constituency is known for its unpredictability, with no single party having dominated the seat in the past. The election outcome will depend on various factors, including caste dynamics, local issues, and the candidates' ability to connect with voters.

Located just a few kilometres off the Ganga coast, Assembly Constituency 165, Munger, has given candidates from multiple political parties a chance to represent them.

While the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has fielded Kumar Pranay, Avinash Kumar Vidyarthi has been given an RJD ticket. Jan Suraaj's Sanjay Kumar Singh, a zila parishad member, is looking to make his foray into state politics. Munger is also one of the 25 seats being contested by All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), with the party fielding former state minister Monazir Hassan, who has served in both Nitish Kumar's and Lalu Prasad Yadav's cabinets.

The Munger seat seems to be unpredictable, with strong anti-incumbency seen every election cycle.

In 2010, the seat was won by JDU's Anant Kumar Satyarthy; in 2015, RJD's Vijay Kumar 'Vijay' unseated the JDU MLA by a margin of 2.60%. In 2020, the people gave the BJP a chance by electing Pranav Kumar, who won by a mere 0.8% of the vote. However, the most significant victory margin was in 2005, when the JDU candidate won by more than 11%.

The BJP is seeking to retain the seat, which it won in the 2020 Assembly elections by a narrow margin of 1244 votes. The party's prospects are boosted by the alliance with Chirag Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (LJP), which may draw votes away from the opposition.

The RJD is part of the Mahagathbandhan and is contesting the election on a platform of social justice and development. The party's candidate is expected to benefit from the support of other opposition parties.

Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party has entered the fray, promising good governance and development. The party's presence is likely to fragment the anti-incumbency vote and pose a challenge to both the BJP and the RJD.

Meanwhile, the AIMIM candidate has been a minister in both 2000 and 2005, bringing in valuable experience of working with both sides.

Despite electing representatives from diverse political backgrounds, the Munger constituency still lacks basic amenities such as road connectivity. The area is susceptible to flooding almost every year, with floods coming in August and September. With the area just kilometres from the banks of the Ganga River, people have been demanding better houses at higher elevations to help address climate change.

Caste equations also play a significant role in the area. While the Yadavs and Muslims are mostly known to support the Opposition party, an AIMIM candidate could swing votes in either direction for any party. While the BJP looks to court the Vaishya and Baniya communities, it could also bank on the strong support of the Koeri and Kurmi communities, with the JDU garnering their support for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

In 2020, the constituency had a total of 339048 votes; however, following specific deletions under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), the number of voters in the constituency changed.

While Munger will go to the polls in the first phase of the election on November 6, the second phase of the Bihar polls will happen on November 11, and the results will be declared on November 14

Poll-bound Bihar experienced scalding political temperature on Thursday when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was assisted by cabinet colleagues Amit Shah and Jagat Prakash Nadda in launching a multi-pronged attack on the opposition INDIA bloc.

Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, who had launched his campaign in the state a day ago, was back in Bihar to address a couple of solo election meetings in constituencies contested by the Congress.

He had, on Wednesday, held two joint rallies with RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, the INDIA bloc’s chief ministerial candidate.

Gandhi was flayed by Modi at back-to-back rallies in Muzaffarpur and Saran districts, where the Prime Minister, without mentioning the former Congress president by name, accused him of "insulting Chhathi Maiya", the deified form of Bihar’s most popular festival.

The Congress leader had dubbed a “drama” Modi’s plan to take a dip in the Yamuna river in Delhi on the occasion of Chhath Puja, and mocked the 75-year-old Prime Minister, alleging, “he will do anything, even dance, perform Bharatnatyam, on the stage if it could fetch him votes”.

Modi also accused the RJD-Congress combine of “protecting infiltrators”, an apparent jibe at the opposition’s strident criticism of the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls, which was undertaken in Bihar much before the same was ordered by the Election Commission for other parts of the country.

The PM also sought to drive a wedge between the opposition allies, likening Congress and RJD to “oil and water” and suspecting that the grand old party was out to inflict “as much damage as possible” on its regional ally, with which its recent feud over seat-sharing arrangements had made “the biggest news”.

Shah, who is a former BJP national president, addressed as many as four rallies during the day, lambasting Gandhi for his comments about “Chhathi Maiya”, accusing him of lacking an appreciation of Indian sensibilities because his “maternal roots are in Italy”.

Similar sentiments were expressed by Nadda, the current BJP president, who claimed Gandhi’s denigration of the holy festival and the Prime Minister, “a high constitutional office”, called into question the “values and upbringing” of the Congress leader.

Nadda also chided the opposition for “claiming to be saviours of the Constitution, but threatening to tear away and throw in the dustbin the amendments to the Waqf Act, which have been passed by Parliament”.

Notably, the INDIA bloc has announced in its manifesto that if voted to power, it will not allow implementation of the amended Act in the state, but ensure “greater transparency in management of Waqf properties”.

Gandhi, who addressed rallies in Nalanda and Sheikhpura districts, continued to dare Modi to refute US President Donald Trump, who has been repeatedly claiming that the military conflict with Pakistan a few months ago was halted under American pressure.

The Congress leader also reiterated the charge that Modi was serving the interests of big business houses, and that the Nitish Kumar government in Bihar was being “run through remote control”, from Delhi, the national capital, and Nagpur, the headquarters of RSS, the BJP’s parent organisation.

Nitish Kumar spent the day canvassing in Begusarai, Munger and Sheikhpura districts while Tejashwi Yadav, his principal challenger and INDIA bloc's chief ministerial candidate, was in Darbhanga and Muzaffarpur.

Academician-turned-political activist Yogendra Yadav was in Patna to campaign for Divya Gautam, the CPI(ML) Liberation candidate from Digha assembly seat.

Aam Aadmi Party MP Sanjay Singh, whose party is contesting the Bihar assembly polls for the first time, held a roadshow in Begusarai and urged the people to defeat the BJP, which, he alleged, deserved to be called “Bharatiya Jhutha (liar) Party”.

Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi, whose AIMIM is contesting 32 seats of the 243-strong assembly in Bihar, continued his campaign in the state for the third consecutive day, with rallies in different constituencies of Purnea district.

The day also saw the first major incident of election-related violence in Mokama, about 100 kms from the state capital, where Dular Chand Yadav, a gangster-turned-politician, was killed in a clash with one of the rivals of his nephew, who is contesting the poll on a ticket of Jan Suraaj Party.

Asserting that Bihar assembly polls are not about "making anyone an MLA or a Minister", Home Minister Amit Shah said that the elections are about stopping the "jungle raj" and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar reined in "lawlessness" and ended the terror of Lalu ji."
Addressing a public gathering in Hilsa, Nalanda, Amit Shah said that NDA government will oust every infiltrator from Bihar.

"Nalanda has seen 'jungle raj'. During the Lalu-Rabri rule, there were 38 massacres across Bihar. In 20 years, during Nitish Kumar's rule, not even one massacre occurred. In Nalanda too, several people were killed; kidnappings, extortion, murders and several other unlawful activities used to take place here. Nitish babu, 'sushashan babu' reined in all these and ended the terror of Lalu ji... These elections are not about making anyone an MLA or a Minister. These elections are about stopping the 'jungle raj' which will come by changing its form," he said.

He termed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's "Vote Adhikar Yatra" as "ghuspaithia bachao yatra".

"Rahul baba was here, he took out a 'ghuspaithia bachao yatra'...You elect an NDA government, we will oust each and every infiltrator from across Bihar...These infiltrators indulge in anti-national activities. You can take out as many 'ghuspaithia bachao yatra' as you want, PM Modi will send back each and every infiltrator," Shah said.

He further said that Prime Minister Modi revived the ancient Nalanda University, which was destroyed by Bakhtiyar Khilji in the 12th century, and restored the pride of Nalanda.

"There used to be Nalanda University here. People used to come from across the world and study here. Bakhtiyar Khilji demolished this University. But PM Modi rebuilt the University, which was demolished in 12th century, and rejuvenated the pride of Nalanda. I can confidently say - ab 100 Bakhtiyar Khilji aayenge toh bhi hamari Nalanda Vidyapeeth ko koi tod nahui paayega," he said.

Shah said that after Prime Minister Modi performed the pranpratishtha of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya in January last year, a sacred earthen lamp has been continuously burning at the Surya Mandir in Hilsa.

He added that a grand Sita Maa temple is being built in Sitamarhi, Bihar, at a cost of Rs 850 crore and will be completed in two years.

"On 22nd January 2024, PM Modi performed pranpratishtha of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. Since then, a 'deep' (earthen lamp) has been burning at Surya Mandir in Hilsa...550 years ago, Ram Mandir was demolished in Ayodhya. Congress and Lalu didn't allow reconstruction for 70 years...Tell me, should Sita Maa Mandir not be built in Bihar as She was born here? Five months back, with Nitish ji, I performed the bhumi pujan of the Sita Maa temple in Sitamarhi at an expense of Rs 850 Crores. Within 2 years, this temple will be ready and PM Modi will perform its pranpratishtha," Shah said.

Bihar assembly elections will be held in two phases on November 6 and 11. The results will be declared on November 14.